The present invention relates generally to microwave couplers, and more particularly, to a waveguide coupler having two waveguide arms with one or more coupling apertures in a common wall, and wherein the amount of power coupled from one arm to the other may be adjusted from zero to a maximum level.
High power waveguide switches currently available have shutters that close or open an aperture that is common to joining waveguides. Some of these devices utilize a rotating drum having appropriately disposed ports, while others use an electromechanically rotated vane or door member. The disadvantages of these types of switches are that they are slow in acting, heavy, and require a considerable amount of power to operate the switch actuator. Also, they do not allow for the varying of the power output level to be transferred from one port to another. In other words, these types of switches can only act as on/off switches.
The trend in the microwave art, and more particularly to the radar art, is to fabricate light weight mobile and transportable systems, including light weight antenna arrays. The present invention allows this goal to be accomplished by eliminating a heavy solenoid switch, and the like. As a further benefit, electrically the invention offers the ability, for example, to vary the power to a null horn, for performance optimization. Although described for certain uses above, it should be understood that this invention is not limited to radar applications and military applications, but, also has potential for widespread commercial applications.